In case you’ve adopted me in any respect within the final 15+ years, you possible find out about my love for Last Fantasy XI (FFXI). Sq. Enix’s MMORPG was my first MMO. I purchased it on launch day right here within the U.S. again in 2004 on the PlayStation 2. I already had the console’s modem so I received house, threw that tough drive into my PS2, and received began.
After preventing the PlayOnline boss (if you happen to assume it is unhealthy now it’s best to have tried it again then!) for hours and hours, I used to be lastly in San d’Oria and was off on my journey. That journey, which pulled my spouse in along with her personal character, lasted for years. At any time when I did get round to making an attempt World of Warcraft, (learn: after I lastly had a pc that would truly play video games), I assumed the sport was manner too simple attributable to what I used to be used to in FFXI.
I’ve by no means actually let go of the sport. Whereas my private expertise is especially again within the 75 degree cap period, since then, I’ve subscribed for a month right here and there to simply screw round. Normally that is when there’s not a lot happening in FFXIV. Nonetheless, I by no means did something significantly within the now 99 degree cap atmosphere. My sub was only a month right here and there, most likely for extra nostalgia than something, if I am being sincere.
That modified just lately.
Whereas FFXIV’s introduction of the Echoes of Vana’diel raid collection definitely has a bit to do with it, it was primarily my little one that received me again in. Seeing an up to date Jeuno in FFXIV (together with the Christmas vacation music!) was superb and it makes me unhappy that the “remake,” even when it was going to be cell, was canceled.
This is the way it began once more and the way issues are going to date:
Over the vacation break my center little one was house from faculty. They’ve all the time needed to be part of an “iconic” MMO second. They appear again on the style and pine to be a part of WoW’s Corrupted Blood pandemic or FFXIV v1.0’s Nice Goobbue Wall. They’ve additionally heard me discuss on stream many occasions about “that first stroll to Jeuno” the place your character was sometimes slathered with Sneak and Invisible, grinding out subjob quest objects, getting that nice expertise celebration one night time solely to not get a celebration in any respect for the following two nights, and lots of different FFXI tales.
For a couple of days, they stored asking to strive FFXI with me whereas they had been on break. Nonetheless, they needed to play on HorizonXI, a non-public FFXI server that also has the previous degree 75 cap and authentic issue. I broke down (what dad would not?) and we booted issues up. We had an incredible night time and leveled our preliminary jobs to about degree 12. I had such a superb time guiding them by way of the methods, the menus (there is a LOT if you do not know), and thru getting issues began with our preliminary San d’Oria missions.
On the finish of the night time, although, we would have liked to talk. I allow them to know that we had now hit an inflection level. If we needed to actually proceed enjoying in a significant manner, we actually solely had two choices. The primary can be to make buddy in HorizonXI and be part of a Linkshell. You’ll be able to’t actually do a lot in a duo when you attain round degree 10-12 within the Chains of Promathia growth world. Even leveling itself now requires both a full celebration or the persistence and free time a working grownup and a university scholar do not have. Choice two was to really play on the retail model of FFXI.
Over time, FFXI not solely elevated their degree cap to 99 and added content material, however they’ve additionally carried out a slew of methods and modifications that make soloing/duos not solely potential, however fairly fulfilling. Hell, primarily based on their most up-to-date survey and New Yr’s letter, they’ve extra plans on this precise entrance. Not unhealthy for a recreation in “upkeep mode.” Maybe a very powerful of those additions is the Belief system which lets you summon as much as 5 NPCs (assuming you have unlocked all of the summoning slots by way of Rhapsodies of Vana’diel missions) to celebration with you. If we had been involved in seeing content material and enjoying by way of a number of the MMO’s implausible tales in a shorter timeline, retail can be the easiest way to go, even when it staved off the “issue” FFXI is thought for to the end-game.
The following night time we subscribed to FFXI retail and began yet again…and I could also be hooked once more. We leveled, we unlocked subjobs, we earned our first few trusts, we accomplished a lot of San d’Oria missions, and we even beginning unlocking superior jobs. The longest a part of unlocking superior jobs to date was getting Summoner opened up. For the following few days we simply might NOT handle to catch a warmth wave climate situation wherever for that rattling Carbuncle’s Ruby.
With Information of Eminence, Rhapsodies of Vana’diel, expertise, advantage factors, job factors, missions, growth tales, and re-learning most of the methods (whereas studying new post-75 methods I had little expertise with), I used to be struck by how a lot FFXI needed to do. Do not get me improper, many MMORPGs have a ton of issues to do. FFXIV has many by itself. Having quite a lot of content material definitely is not stunning for an MMO as previous as FFXI is, both.
What stunned me a bit was how a lot I WANTED to do. I am not likely a mount farmer in MMOs, however that is definitely one thing you are able to do in a lot of them once you’re a bit bored or caught up on essential content material. Nonetheless, in FFXI, we frequently discovered ourselves sitting there for a couple of minutes deciding precisely what we needed to go do from a listing of a ton of issues we truly needed to go do, not only a record of issues we COULD do.
At this time my subscription renewed for the month. It is the primary time I’ve let my FFXI sub roll for a second month in years. I performed extra days than I did not this previous month, had a couple of shock random streams on one in all my private channels, received my Pink Mage to degree 99, hit 50 for my Scholar subjob, unlocked 6 extra superior jobs, completed the base-game and Zilart growth tales, made my manner by way of half of Promathia’s growth, began leveling Ninja for a subjob so I can melee solo a bit extra if I wish to, and a lot extra. We even managed to hunt a couple of Infamous Monsters alongside the best way and, because of the flexibility to teleport in every single place lately, we did not spend hours and hours strolling round to do it.
I’ve received tons of varied currencies and have my first set of ilevel 119 gear.
And I am simply getting began. In actual fact, I will be enjoying proper after work in the present day.
It is simply good to be enjoying an MMO and pondering whereas I am at work “what do I wish to do tonight if I handle to go browsing.” It additionally amazes me that whereas browsing by way of the Wiki (which you WILL must do in FFXI) that there is nonetheless issues on this 23-year-old MMO that we do not know for certain. Are you able to even think about that at the present time? We’re nonetheless undecided EXACTLY what the triggers are on the questions you could reply to unlock the Blue Mage subjob. We’re nonetheless not 100% certain on the complete necessities to unlock the bottom Shantotto Alter Ego in your Trusts.
Now we have fundamental concepts, however there’s nonetheless “secrets and techniques” on the market and I find it irresistible.
If you would like to comply with my journey although each nostalgia and thru methods I by no means actually messed with earlier than, let me know if you would like to see me write some comply with up articles to this one over the following month or so.
If FFXIV’s Echoes of Vana’diel raid introduced you again to FFXI or to the sport for the primary time, let me know your ideas about diving again in, too.
(P.S. If you need your model of FFXI to look higher than the bottom PS2 graphics, then sure. Use Windower and some instruments. This is an incredible video that will help you. It is easy to comply with and though it’s labeled as 2022, there actually wasn’t a lot so as to add to it in 2023 and 2024, so it nonetheless holds very properly.)
